By — Connie Kargbo Connie Kargbo By — Lisa Overton Lisa Overton Leave a comment 0comments Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/arts/poet-uses-runaway-slave-ads-to-tell-a-story-of-resistance Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Poet uses runaway slave ads to tell a story of resistance Arts Nov 29, 2020 1:30 PM EDT St. Mary’s College of Maryland unveiled a new memorial this month honoring the lives of enslaved people of southern Maryland, including some who lived on the very land their campus is on. The memorial tells the story of “resilience, persistence, and creative problem-solving that defined the lives” of the enslaved people that lived there between 1750 and 1815, and asks: How can higher education institutions atone for their legacy of slavery? Seattle-based poet and educator Quenton Baker contributed poetry to the memorial, including the following poem, which uses old ads for runaway slaves to tell the story of resistance. By Quenton Baker: not hewn from the whip not made by the lash come BAPTIST come LYDIA come MOLL CROCK come GEOFFRY slave falls intolerable against you you living temples you gilded wards come STEPHEN JOHNSON come WILL NORRIS come BAR come NAT this day and every day belongs to your longing to your shortened years your worn joints your smooth black laugh toward peril By — Connie Kargbo Connie Kargbo Connie Kargbo has been working in the media field since 2007 producing content for television, radio, and the web. As a field producer at PBS NewsHour Weekend, she is involved in all aspects of the news production process from pitching story ideas to organizing field shoots to scripting feature pieces. Before joining the weekend edition of PBS Newshour, Connie was a Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand where she trained Thai English teachers. By — Lisa Overton Lisa Overton
St. Mary’s College of Maryland unveiled a new memorial this month honoring the lives of enslaved people of southern Maryland, including some who lived on the very land their campus is on. The memorial tells the story of “resilience, persistence, and creative problem-solving that defined the lives” of the enslaved people that lived there between 1750 and 1815, and asks: How can higher education institutions atone for their legacy of slavery? Seattle-based poet and educator Quenton Baker contributed poetry to the memorial, including the following poem, which uses old ads for runaway slaves to tell the story of resistance. By Quenton Baker: not hewn from the whip not made by the lash come BAPTIST come LYDIA come MOLL CROCK come GEOFFRY slave falls intolerable against you you living temples you gilded wards come STEPHEN JOHNSON come WILL NORRIS come BAR come NAT this day and every day belongs to your longing to your shortened years your worn joints your smooth black laugh toward peril